Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Fighters of Flame
by ErictheCleric
Summary: A human finds himself in the world of Pokémon, turned into a Squirtle with a degree of amnesia. Meanwhile, a legendary comet has froze while passing the planet's atmosphere thirty years ago, bringing about eternal day and enraged beasts of fire. And so, it is up to the Squirtle and his Mudkip companion to survive, defend, and discover... in desperate pursuit of the truth.
1. Chapter 1: Waves

_A gentle breeze was tickling him._

 _Something about the air was stuffy and hot, but it came as pleasant to him._

 _He could feel the sun's rays slowly baking him, the warmth making him drift off again..._

"Hey. Wake up."

 _This was nice... he could get used to this... but just a slight discomfort... it was getting too hot..._

"Are — are you dead...?"

 _Hot. Hotter. It was like being in a oven. And who was this voice, so intent on bothering him?_

"Get... get... oh, Arceus... **GET UP!** "

"AAAGH!" Screaming, he instantly sat upright, nearly colliding with the voice.

He was sitting on the sand, in what seemed to be a forest with dried-up trees, and the blue sky was cloudless. He now realized how hot he was. He felt like he was melting, sweat and all.

Turning to take a look at his rude visitor, he saw a four-legged blue Pokémon blinking at him.

"You're awake!" it said.

Everything seemed to stop for a moment, and then —

"AAAAAGH!" he screamed for the second time. "You-you-?!"

"Are you okay? Dehydrated? Why were you lying there in the first place? No, stand still, I think you're..." the Pokémon, the _talking_ one, turned and reached into its bag with its front paws. It soon produced a long and flat tab, and shoved it into his shouting mouth.  
The tab soon made a _beep_ noise, and the Pokémon pulled it out and peered at it.

His face fell.  
"...We need to get you to a hospital. Now."

"How are you talking?!" he choked out, disregarding the Pokémon's urgent attitude. A sudden wave of sickness was starting to overcome him, but he had to know this.

"You're hallucinating, too!" it groaned, before taking him by the hand. His blue, stubby, three-fingered...

"AAAAAAH!" he shouted a third time, staring at the hand that certainly didn't belong to him.

"Get a hold of yourself!" it yelled desperately at him, dragging him somewhere. "I don't know why you were _snoozing_ here, but you're dehydrated and close to having a heat stroke!"

 _Like heat strokes matter right now!_ he thought angrily. ...No, it mattered a little bit... he was feeling very queasy... and exhausted...

"Don't faint! Not now! We still have to walk..." A sudden bright idea seemed to illuminate the Pokémon's face.  
It reached into its bag and pulled out something small that shined in the harsh sunlight. Holding the item tightly in one paw, it wrung its arm around his as though trying to strangle it. It then thrust the glittering item to the sky.

Instantly, a floating sensation spread through his body which was already overloaded with sickness. He soon realized that it wasn't a sensation at all. He _was_ floating. Intense light was wrapping around him and the Pokémon...  
And with a flash, and the unpleasant sinking feeling of being sucked into a toilet, the world around him all disappeared into a whirlwind of color, before it all became black.

* * *

"He'll be alright?"

"Yes, yes. And if I'm not mistaken, he should be coming to right about now..."

He opened his eyes. He was in a small cave room, illuminated by a candle on a table. He was lying in a comfy bed... and a Nidoqueen in a doctor's gown was staring at him.

"Hello." it said slowly. Was this Nidoqueen a doctor? Was that logical? "You were found by this Mudkip fellow over here. You were having a heat stroke." It was waving at him nervously behind the doctor. Yes, it was a Mudkip, he remembered its species. A _talking_ one, though? "You are in the hospital of the Indigo settlement, and you will be restored to perfect health. You aren't recorded as a resident in our settlement, so you can tell us where you came from, and we can arrange for an escort. Do you... have a nickname?"

Not much of this made any sense to him, but he decided to answer.  
"My name's..."

...

"...I don't know." Even he couldn't believe it as the words tumbled out of his mouth.

"You don't know, Squirtle?" the doctor repeated, looking horrified. He could hear a squeak from the spectating Mudkip.

"No, I have questions though!" he shouted, equally shocked. "Why are you _talking_?! Pokémon can't _talk_! And — and — ... _did you just call me a Squirtle_?"

"Well, yes, since that's your species." the Nidoqueen said with renewed slowness. She was treating him like he had cancer and had five days left to live. "If you're the type that's offended by being called like that, you could tell us your nickname, but since you have acquired amnesia..."

"I DO NOT HAVE AMNESIA!" He was getting very panicky. "AND I AM _NOT_ A POKÉMON!"

"Then what do you think you are, young turtle?" the doctor asked, looking quite disturbed.

"I AM A HUMAN!"

Sudden silence. His words rang in the room.

"...But... Squirtle, humans are extinct. And humans couldn't turn into Pokémon even if they wanted. You can't be serious." the doctor pleaded, handing him a small mirror from her pocket. Scott took it, wondering why she even carried around one. Were humans turning into Pokémon a common incident here? Her tone suggested otherwise... "Maybe you should get some more rest, and then we'll see if a psychic can't do something for you..."

The supposedly-extinct, self-proclaimed human slumped back into his bed. But not in defeat. Oh _no_. He _knew_ that he was a human. It was a fact.

But how to prove it? He couldn't even remember his name... and now he was a little water-turtle Pokémon, about to be sent to Pokémon asylum.  
He peered into his reflection in the mirror. A Squirtle stared back, looking scared. He soon got conscious about his shell crushing his tail, and he had to shift a little. Both were very foreign features to his body. He tried moving his tail, and it waved around like a fifth limb, responding to his will perfectly. It was the strangest feeling, having such a thing stuck to him.

The doctor lingered for another moment before exiting the room, quietly closing the wooden door on them.  
 _Them._ The Mudkip didn't leave.  
"Gee, good thing I brought the badge..." it mumbled, more to itself than anyone else.

Thinking for a moment, the former human decided that small talk would be nice for gathering information about this bizarre world.  
"Badge? That... glittery thing?"

"Yeah, that!" he(its voice suggested it was a he) shuffled closer. The Mudkip showed him what the thing actually was: A small, blue teardrop-shaped badge with white wings. "This is a Flame Fighter badge. It can teleport people to a nearby Fighter base. My brother's! He's off-duty today, so... so... oh no... he's going to be so mad at me... I kinda took this without telling him..."

"Flame Fighter?" Scott repeated blankly.

"Yeah!" the Mudkip said, his eyes seeming to glitter like the badge. "Since fire-Pokémon cause so much trouble, there are specialized teams of Flame Fighters that defend the citizens!" no, his eyes were literally _glowing._ "And they explore mystery dungeons, they get supplies from them, rescue poor people that passed out from the heat... ...Hey! I guess I did that today. I'm just like my brother! This is amazing!"

He wasn't sure what was talking about exactly, and a headache was coming on...  
"So... don't you have to return the badge?"

"Right! I have to go now! Just... stay here, okay? Don't come out until somebody lets you. You might get lost, this place is really big..."

"Wait!" he said suddenly. Was it the prospect of being left alone that compelled him to do so? "What's your... name...?"

"My nickname? Mathias. And my brothers' is Marcel, if you were curious. And your nickname... oh... you don't know. But I don't want to call you by your species, Marcel said it was rude."

The human briefly mused to himself how rude it would sound if everybody called each other 'human' back at home.

"Umm... can I call you Scott? Is that okay?" Mathias suggested after a moment of thinking.

Scott. It was... vaguely familiar, although he was sure it wasn't his actual name. Just one that he might have heard before. But it wasn't a bad one. He nodded to show his consent.

"Great! 'Kay Scott, I'll leave my bag here, you can look through it if you're ever bored. I'll be back soon, promise!" clutching the badge in one paw, he bounded off on three feet, barging through the door. It bounced back and shut itself, leaving Scott in perfect, lonely silence.

Scott picked up the mirror again, and looked at the turtle inside. Staring back at him.  
With a sigh, he put it down and slid into his sheets. In any case, this wasn't _too_ bad. Maybe he would wake up to see that this was all just a stupid dream. If not, Mathias was entertaining enough to stop him from getting too depressed.

The human-turned-Squirtle turned over and closed his eyes, thinking...


	2. Chapter 2: Comet Passing

It took a moment for Scott to grasp why he was lying in the foreign bed.

He rolled over on the spot and snatched up the discarded mirror; the same Squirtle nicknamed Scott for the time being was in it, looking groggy. Everything that had happened so far, and was happening, was not a dream. So be it... He would find a way.

Once reoriented, he went through the events that had happened recently. Mathias the Mudkip and the Nidoqueen doctor had left him, and the former had said he would return 'soon'. He supposed he had slept for a few minutes at best.

He slid off the bed, feeling tired but not desiring more sleep. His shell felt quite heavy as he moved around, but not too much. He could get used to it.

His (blue, stubby, three-digit)hand was on the doorknob when he remembered how everyone had told him repeatedly: _don't leave the room_. Heaving a resigned sigh, he turned to the room. It was quite the cozy den, carpet, candle, wooden bed and all, but it was quickly becoming very dull.

Then, he had the brilliant idea to look through Mathias's bag. He had specifically given permission to do so should Scott be bored, and he would help himself. The sling-on bag was very old and patched with spare cloth in places, the strap looking like it would break at the slightest strain. Slightly surprised at how ancient the thing was, he flipped it open.

Inside were a assortment of items: the thermometer-thing Mathias had stuck in his mouth to check his status, a collection of colorful berries with varying size and shape, a cracked metal cog thing that was warm to the touch, gold coins with the letter P engraved on them, and finally, a big glass bottle with Mathias's name etched on it. It was half-full with clear liquid which he assumed was water.

It was seeing this water that made him fully realize that he was _thirsty_. His mouth was dry, and the headache was creeping back. A moment's consideration... Mathias had allowed _looking_ at the bag and its contents, but _drinking_ his water was a different matter, not to mention probably rude for Pokémon standards too.

...Not like water was _rare_ , though. He would make up for it by visiting the water fountain for Mathias instead. He wouldn't complain, the thing was half-full when he got to it anyway.

That was decided, then. He would help himself, and would refill it afterwards. He raised the bottle to his mouth, ready to quench his thirst.

 ** _CRASH._**

"Scott! I'm back! Did you miss me?" the Mudkip shouted with spirit, bouncing on the spot. The door was shaking from being kicked open with such force.

"yeahwhowhawhat-?" Scott had managed to recover from this scare unscathed by swiftly jerking the bottle away from him. It was indeed an effective way of keeping it from spilling all over him, and he personally thought it was quite the physical feat.

"You're flustered!" Mathias laughed. "That's kind of cute, actually. I hope you got some sleep-" he stared at his water bottle in Scott's hands. His jaw dropped. "You didn't... _drink_ that, did you...?"

"No! I-I was about to, but I didn't drink any yet!" Scott blabbed, forcing the cap onto the bottle and sliding it away with his foot.

"You-you... oh... that's a relief..." he slumped to the ground, a look of sincere relief upon his face.

"Er, wasn't that water? Was it something important?" Scott said nervously. Had he done something wrong? _Already_?

"It's water, yeah. And it's VERY important." he said faintly. "Look, I don't know if you amnesia'd this too, but water is really scarce here. That bottle's my share for today. And it's not a lot, I tell you!"

"I've never been here, how would I know that?!" Scott exclaimed with a hint of impatience, and slight surprise at such irrational rationing of water. "I told you, I'm a human, really!"

"Well, if you say so... I believe you." Mathias said shortly.

"...You do?" Scott said, taken aback.

"No reason not to." Mathias shrugged. "I've been thinking, and I just feel like I can trust you on that, as crazy as it might sound. Anyway, my point is that any water outside dried up years ago. And we can't _always_ go inside a mystery dungeon for the stuff, it's dangerous." Mathias replied steadily. "We already spent two bottles reviving you from being baked in that forest, we can't spare any more for you!"

"Wait, really?" Scott was appalled, to the point where he forgot his new question about 'mystery dungeons'. "But I still feel thirsty, why is that?"

"It's a water-Pokémon thing, I guess. We're supposed to live near lakes and seas, places like that that dried up years ago. Bottles of water aren't enough to satisfy us." Mathias shrugged. "We just have to put up with the thirst."

"Okay, that's that, but will _anyone_ tell me _why_ this place has no water!" Scott said, annoyed by the lack of information from anybody.

"...Wow. You really don't know _anything_ , huh?" Mathias said, sounding surprised.

" _Yes._ " said Scott desperately.

"Let's start from the beginning, then. How much _do_ you know?" Mathias asked, suddenly sounding like a skilled practitioner of mental medicine. Scott wondered where that confidence came from, but he replied anyway.

"Um... that you guys are Pokémon?" Scott said, frowning. "And basic stuff? I can talk and all. And I know your species and types... and that _you're_ not supposed to be _talking_? Don't you get why I was so freaked out?"

"You must be talking about feral Pokémon." Mathias said. "Feral Pokémon can't talk. And they're hardly civilized, they try to knock foreigners out all the time. That, or humans just couldn't understand us. We _can_ talk, for the record. And... anything else? About yourself?"

Scott shook his head.

"Hmm... about the comet? Know about the comet?"

He shook his head again.

Mathias sighed. "This is going to be hard... 'kay, follow me." He put his water bottle back in the bag and slung it over his shoulder. He was beckoning for Scott to follow. Scott obliged, silently contemplating how this day was simply packed with surprises.

Outside the door was a long rocky corridor with similar doors to the one he just closed on each side, presumably leading to rooms like his. He was now sure of this; he was in a carved-out cave system.

They passed a dozen more doors, past a bigger door with the plaque 'Doctor Nicole' on it, and ended up in a scene which made Scott stop on the spot, petrified.

It was a grand hall, a colossal stone dome carved underground. Hundreds of tunnels bore into the walls, big and small, each having a small wooden sign next to them to indicate their purpose. The one Scott just exited had 'Hospital' carved on its one.

And in this giant structure, crowds of Pokémon were flitting in and out of the tunnels, the higher ones used exclusively by Pokémon with flight, carrying scraps of paper or berries.

All of this was illuminated by glowing giant crystals on the ceiling, deep indigo crystals that set a blue-greenish hue over everything. They were bright enough that they stung Scott's eyes, and he had to look away.

"What is this place...?" Scott breathed when Mathias came back to get him.

"Main hall of the Indigo Settlement." he explained. "Every facility, corridor, room, exit, _everything's_ connected to here, so it's always busy. Those crystals are this place's namesake, namesake of the Indigo settlement. Apparently this place was a human crystal mine before Pokémon found it abandoned. We expanded it, like so. Does... does this trigger any memories, maybe?"

"...No." but Scott was still mesmerized by this scene so much that Mathias had to drag him again, bumping into a lot of other Pokémon but ultimately reaching the tunnel that led to a gate.

Contrary to the hustle at the hall, the stairway leading to the gate was quite empty, suggesting that nobody wanted to traverse the outdoors. It was only Scott, Mathias, and a bag-carrying, dreary-eyed Clefable that climbed the stairs. The Clefable caught Scott's eye on the way and gave him a small wink, which he nervously returned with an even smaller wave.

In silence, the three Pokémon walked until they reached a set of stone doors. The doors slid open automatically at their presence with some inexplicable mechanism, and they walked out into the desert. Scott turned to see that they had just exited a small rock mountain in the middle of an infinite desert.

The doors closed, and the Clefable went on its way.

The sky was a deep orange now, and so Scott guessed it was sunset, since it was midday(blue sky) a few hours ago.

Mathias was headed somewhere. Scott followed. The air was incredibly hot, and Scott was overheated already.

Meanwhile, Mathias was rummaging inside his bag. "Oh great, I didn't pack it..."

"Pack what?" Scott panted.

"My sun-goggles. Ah well, it's night, won't matter much if we look..." Mathias sighed, closing his bag.

" _Night?_ " the sun hadn't even set yet, and Scott was sure that wasn't called night. And it was still _hot_.

"Yeah. Um... look at the sky. We're out here so you can understand." Mathias said, pointing up.

Scott nodded and looked up, expecting to see the stars popping into view. Instead, he saw the sun shining in the middle of the sky.

...No, that wasn't the sun. Its size was wrong. And the sun usually did not have a long tail of flames trailing behind it.

"That's the _Trail of Moltres._ " Mathias explained. "It's a comet that comes around once every seventy-five years, and stays in our continent's upper atmosphere for a while before going away for the next seventy-five."

"Wow." Scott mumbled, looking away from the dazzling ball of fire lest his eyes burn. "...Uh, it's pretty and all, but what does this have to do with the no-water thing? And why is nobody out to see this? Isn't this a once-in-a-lifetime thing?"

"Because," the Mudkip looked more and more depressed as he brought himself to say: "That comet's been there for more than thirty years now. Last time, it never left after arriving."

"So-" Scott stopped. He looked up once again. The comet was still there. Frozen on the spot. Its trail was not wavering at all. " _Thirty_ **_years_**?"

"Yep. It's been in our continent's sky since thirty years ago." Mathias hushed Scott and continued, "That comet's special. It's so intense that nighttime is _meaningless_ when it's passing. It's only slightly weaker than the sun, some say. And more importantly, the Trail of Moltres _resonates_ with fire Pokémon."

"What does that mean...?" The fact that a comet could stay in the same spot for several decades was more shocking than talking Pokémon, and that was saying something.

"Fire Pokémon all have their inner flames, right?" Scott nodded. It was trivial. "Well... those flames react to the comet. Violently. Fire types go berserk while the comet is in the sky, and they're strengthened by it, to make matters worse."

"And since the comet has been there for thirty years..." Scott muttered to himself in horror.

"It's been... well... Imagine that every fire Pokémon you meet is as strong as a legendary. And furious. And they _never_ listen to reason. Always. It... it isn't pretty. There isn't a single forest left intact now... and the lakes are all dried up, too. Even without the fire guys, that comet is like having eternal daytime, since it's as strong as the sun and it stays at night. Now, our day-night cycle is day-to-darker day. This is darker day, and technically... night."

"Why? Why is something like _this_ happening?" his mind was reeling with unpleasant thoughts, his imagination drawing up a scene of a faceless Pokémon getting mauled by dozens of insane beasts of fire.

"Nobody knows." he shrugged. "But most agree to the theory that space-time somehow got messed up on the exact spot where the comet was passing, and the comet froze there. And to this day, no one can answer who or what did that. We couldn't make progress." Mathias adjusted his bag, giving it a little shake as if to see that the contents were still safely there.

"Then how... how have you guys been surviving? No water, no night, fire Pokémon hassling you... how?"

"We stuck together. We retreated into caves, into the ground, into valleys... escape the heat, you know. Those sanctuaries are called settlements. Like our Indigo settlement. I was born there, raised there... it's my home. And the water, we get it from mystery dungeons." Mathias reeled off.

"Okay, what's a mystery dungeon, please tell me now?" Scott asked, remembering that he had vowed to ask the question later.

The settlement was now out of their sights, obscured by a particularly large mountain of sand. Only desert terrain surrounded the two water Pokémon. Still, Mathias kept on walking, and Scott simply had to trust that the Mudkip knew what he was doing.

"We're going to one! That's why we left the settlement. It's safer to travel at night, and there's one not far from here. Thought I could demonstrate what it's like there!" Mathias said enthusiastically.

"That's still not an explanation. What's a mystery dungeon?" Scott insisted.

"It's... well, a mystery. Why they appear is a mystery, what they do is a mystery... but for now, we call them anomalies in the time-space continuum. They're whole areas where the continuum is disrupted. The structures and paths inside a mystery dungeon always change. They shift around _every time_ you enter. And time is all messed up inside. They're cut off from the normal world, and you can't exit through where you entered. You have to find staircases or gates to go to one area after another, until you find an exit." Mathias sounded enthusiastic about ever-changing labyrinths, but Scott had a different opinion.

"Um... that's really scary to think. And that matters because...?" Scott trailed off, lost.

"Because time is messed up, too! Think, if a mystery dungeon appears over a shadow of a river or something, inside the dungeon could be a flowing river with fresh water, stuck at a time before the comet arrived! If it appears around a former-garden, boom! Hard-to-grow berries just there for the taking, if the explorer is lucky enough!"

"Ohhhh." it made some sense now. If he ignored the time-space-anomaly part. "Then why don't you guys live inside dungeons? Sounds nice enough sometimes..."

"We tried! But... _something_ kept _expelling_ us. Something. Nobody knows what it is, but staying in a dungeon for too long makes the Thing shoo us out. And it's very dangerous inside one anyway, wild Pokémon keep wandering inside them and getting trapped... and the trapped Pokémon attack visitors. And the Thing doesn't bother to shoo out wild Pokémon for some dumb reason. All in all, it's really dangerous." said Mathias.

"Ah, dang. ...Wait, we're visiting a place like that. Are you... confident?" personally, _he_ wasn't.

"Yeah! I've been to this one dungeon near our settlement loads of times. I want to be a Flame Fighter like my bro someday, so I practice... and this dungeon is on the easy side. I can handle it... I think. Nobody goes there since water doesn't appear often, compared to other dungeons... but we can drink as much water as we want if that _does_ happen when we're there. _And_ it's good experience for the amnesia Squirtle." he winked. "Maybe a trip to a dungeon'll jog your memory. ...Oh, we found it. It's around that area." Mathias said, pointing at a distant palm tree standing in the middle of the sand. There was a great pit in front of the palm, filled with rocks.

"That's good. And what do Flame Fighters do, actually...? Are they like-"

 **GRRRRR.**

Scott and Mathias both froze on the spot.

Turning around ever so slowly, they soon locked eyes with a great, red canine that emanated heat. An Arcanine. It was growling at them threateningly.

They had chatted and proceeded without any caution, forgetting that there were indeed enraged fire Pokémon living outside the settlement. Ready to pounce on unsuspecting travelers.

" _Don't move._ " Mathias whispered. The Arcanine bared its teeth viciously at the sound.

" _What do we do now_?" Scott whispered in terror.

" _We_... ** _RUN_**!"

At once, the two terrified Pokémon whipped around and dashed to the palm, to the mystery dungeon, the Arcanine snapping at their heels.

* * *

"I arranged for a psychic Pokémon to come, Squirtle. You can wait here for a while, sleep if you want, and then we'll get you fixed... up..."

Doctor Nicole stared at the empty room, devoid of any life.

"...Squirtle...? ...Mudkip? Where... OH ARCEUS, _NO!_ EMERGENCY! SOMEBODY CONTACT A SEEKER!" she shrieked at the top of her voice, running through the hospital's corridors and banging on the wards, making wounded Pokémon curiously peek outside afterwards.

"MY PATIENT IS _GONE!_ AHHHHH!"


	3. Chapter 3: Diving In

Scott had never tried running since becoming a Squirtle.  
And why he was so confident in his ability to _run_ when he was, in fact, a _turtle_ Pokémon, was a mystery.

Unlike him, his Mudkip companion was not a turtle. And _he_ had four legs to run on. Scott had two. Mathias was outrunning him. A lot.

Mathias soon noticed Scott's absence, and turned around to see him running with all his might, but still severely lacking in speed. The Arcanine was catching up, taken by surprise at first but now on a furious chase.

"SCOTT! GO ALL FOURS, WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" Mathias yelled in disbelief.

" _HUMANS_ DON'T WALK ON ALL FOURS!" Scott shouted back, before the Arcanine caught up and bit into his tail, and lifted him up by it. "YAAAAAARGH!"

At once, Mathias threw off his bag and rushed to Scott's aid. The great dog of fire glanced at the Mudkip, who was in turn staring into its eyes and talking himself into something.

"Little help here?" squeaked Scott while dangling upside down, tears welling from the pain of having his tail chewed on.

"I... have an idea... I don't know if it'll work..." Mathias replied, looking anxious.

The Arcanine made a noise that sounded rather like a condescending snort, and made to turn away with its meal.

"WAIT! I'M NOT DONE WITH YOU!" Mathias panicked, finally seeming to reach a decision and bounding up to the dog. "Scott, cover your face!"

Scott did as Mathias instructed with his hands, wondering to himself what on earth Mathias was planning.

A moment later, he felt some sand being pelted all over his body.

When the spraying was over, Scott peeked between his fingers to see that Mathias had kicked some sand at the Arcanine's face. He could hear it yelping in displeasure, and it relinquished its bite on him.

"Sand-attack!" Mathias panted. "Scott, get to where my bag is and wait there—I'll hold it off!"

Indeed, Scott had managed to shield his eyes from the makeshift sandstorm, but the Arcanine had not. Consequently, it had lost its vision; and it was now _very_ angry.

Not wanting to take part in the fire Pokémon's rampage any more, Scott fell to all fours and tried running on them. The first few steps were clumsy and unorganized, but he soon got better and learnt it was a lot faster than his human-walk, although degrading.  
On his sprint to the bag, Scott turned his head and saw Mathias sprinting around and shooting the blinded Arcanine with jets of water from his mouth. With satisfying sizzling sounds, the feral Pokémon stumbled on the spot, hurt greatly by the water.

Once the enemy was incapacitated, Mathias retreated and joined Scott, who had become the temporary bag-carrier.  
"Let's go, just run to that tree, he won't follow us into the dungeon!" Mathias wheezed. Scott nodded and ran on two feet again, the bag too awkward for fours.

He felt the hot sand slapping his feet, but he kept going, Mathias by his side, the palm tree inching closer...

* * *

 **-Midsola Lake, Area 1-**

It was suddenly nighttime.  
And it was not the darker-day the Pokémon of this day had to endure. It was the true darkness where the stars and the moon were free to reign.  
The air had become cool and crisp, nothing like the hot steam until then.

Scott whipped around to discover that the Arcanine was nowhere to be seen. Only an infinite stretch of grass and berry trees were there.

The desert around them had disappeared. The terrain was subtly similar to where they were before, but the desert had been replaced entirely by grassland and flowers.

The palm tree was in the same spot, a few hundred meters away, but looking very small compared to what it had been previously. It might have pushed out of the ground mere days ago.

In front of the palm was a sight that made Scott's heart truly race: _a lake._ A large body of water, in a location which corresponded with the pit at the desert. Moonlight was reflected on the surface of the beautiful liquid, bringing Scott a great peace of mind.

All in all, it looked as though Scott had literally run through time and into an earlier and more peaceful date. Scott was mesmerized by the beauty of this scene.

"What... what happened?" Scott whispered, again breathtaken.

"We entered a mystery dungeon." Mathias replied, his voice cracking. "This is Midsola Lake, an open-space, low-danger mystery dungeon... and since time is bungled up here, we're at about... I'd say lots of decades ago? Before... before the comet... Wow, we found a _lake_ , didn't we...?" and he promptly collapsed on the spot, much to Scott's horror.

"Mathias! What's wrong? Mathias?" Scott shook his companion. No response.

 _It's a water-Pokémon thing, I guess. We're supposed to live near lakes and seas, places like that that dried up years ago._

Scott remembered these words. Mathias had said them at the settlement.

Mathias's breathing was becoming heavy and strained. He could only hope that the impossibly lucky lake would do Mathias some good.

Scott began the laborious task of dragging Mathias to the lake, which was still considerably far away. He could hear wild Pokémon all around him, could sense them-but nobody attacked, and he was thankful for it.

* * *

 **-Midsola Lake, Area 2-**

The combined weight of the bag, the unconscious Mudkip, and the painful pounding on his bitten tail had taken their toll on Scott, but he had done it at last. They were right in front of the lake. Its surface rippled ever so slightly, a cool wind sweeping over it.

 _Now... what to do?_

Despite his immediate impulse, throwing Mathias in the lake seemed impractical, not to mention dangerous. So instead, Scott cupped his hands and lowered them to the lake, filling them with the water(not a lot, considering his hands' size). The dip instantly gave his hand a kind of soothing and gentle relief, so intense that the rest of his body seemed to ache in comparison.  
And without further ado, Scott carried that wonderful sensation over to Mathias and splashed his unconscious body with it.

Mathias shifted a little bit, but did not respond when Scott called his name. So Scott made two more trips of water splashing, and on the third, Mathias opened his eyes.

"...Night sky." he stated, naming the sky he was looking at.

"Are you okay?" Scott whispered, relieved that Mathias was fine.

"Yeah, I shouldn't have used water gun... I got dehydrated." Mathias said, quickly regaining composure. "And hey, you dragged me all the way here... I owe you one!"

"Hey, you saved me earlier, remember?" Scott smiled.

"Oh, right. So... we're even now?" Mathias grinned back.

"Even."

Some silence passed where the two water Pokémon just sat on the edge of the river, Mathias refilling his bottle from the lake, Scott drinking directly from it, both enjoying the moment.

"...So, the lake is here, filled with water." Scott said, breaking the quiet after having his thirst completely cured. "How often does _that_ happen?"

"Like, never." Mathias laughed. "It's usually just a crater filled with Sandshrews."

"And... the Arcanine? Where did it go?" Scott asked.

"The more intelligent ferals know not to enter a dungeon." said Mathias. "The stupid ones just waltz in and get trapped... And the scary ones are the ones that come in of their own accord, for prey. That one was the first kind, I guessed. Lucky guess!"

Scott nodded, glad that it had indeed been a lucky guess, but shuddering internally at the thought of what would have happened if it was the last kind.

Mathias got up, and looked at Scott. "So, while we're here, we should go for a swim. Dungeon lakes don't happen all that often, you know. Get reinvigorated! We could cure your heat stroke completely..."

"Swim?" Scott repeated blankly.

"Yeah, swim. ...Did humans not know how to swim?" Mathias asked, astonished.

"No! We do that! Just... _I_ don't." Scott mumbled.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Mathias said slowly.

" _I can't swim._ " Scott blurted out. "I just remembered. I can't swim. I just can't."

Another length of silence, this time broken by a laugh.

Soon, Mathias was rolling around, laughing his guts out.

"Hey, what's so funny?" Scott groaned.

Mathias gathered himself. " _Haha-oh...ha_. Sorry. Just... you're a _Squirtle_. How can you _not_ swim? The idea of that is... really strange."

"I... think I had bad times while trying to swim when I was a human. I can remember some stuff like that." Scott hung his head. "Great, I probably look really pathetic right now."

"Nah you don't. Not a lot, anyway. ...No, in fact, let's change that right now!" Mathias declared, grabbing Scott's hand.

"Wait, wha...AA... _AAAAAA!_ "

Mathias, with sudden and surprising strength, had lifted Scott up like a plush toy and tossed him over to the lake.  
Scott was not ready. The water was getting close. He had foggy memories of sinking into a cold abyss, and he did not like it one bit. The water was reflecting a scared and screaming Squirtle, hurtling towards it...

 ** _SPLASH._**

In a cold explosion of water, every sound around him was muffled. It was like someone had suddenly stuffed his ears with large pillows.

And Scott was sinking like a rock, his limbs flailing around helplessly. He had gotten no time to take a breath for the dive. He would suffocate, trapped in the pressuring, suffocating mass crushing him, unable to float...

In his panic, he thought he saw Mathias whipping past his vision. He knew what was happening. He was now hallucinating and seeing his companion, the one who had so willingly trusted his humanity.

...No, it wasn't a hallucination. It _was_ Mathias, zipping around him with surprising agility. Mathias gently nudged Scott righted him, stopping him from spinning around in uncontrolled circles. He made some hand gestures telling Scott to calm down. Reluctantly, he tried to, still thinking about how he would black out in moments from oxygen deprivation.

But it did not happen. On the contrary, he was fine. He was sure he had gulped some water by accident on his descent, so why was he so... at home?  
Then he realized. He could _breathe water._

Scott gestured his astonishment at this, and Mathias nodded wordlessly with a smile. He, as a water Pokémon, now had infinite oxygen while underwater, and Mathias was there to guide him. He could now fully appreciate the calming effect of water on his skin, around his body, soothing his tail and easing the pain of being bitten. He also noted his enhanced visibility in the water, the dim light hardly mattering in his ability to distinguish objects. He could count every fish in the lake with them easily. Around fifteen.

Mathias took Scott's hand once again, and started swimming. Scott trailed behind. He was not moving a muscle, yet Mathias was shooting past walls and rocks without any hindrance, swerving past a stray Magikarp stylishly, once even breaking the surface and doing a flip with Scott before diving again.

It was _fun_.

And Mathias let go.

Somehow, he was not panicking. Instead, he tried moving his legs. The way Mathias did it. With the slightest movement, he was propelled to great lengths. The use of arms in collaboration added to speed and control. His now-cured tail was great for delicate swerves. Soon, he and Mathias were circling around each other with enthusiasm. It was as though his Squirtle body was made for _this,_ and this only.

He could have done this for hours more. For days. He wouldn't have complained if he had to live in the lake forever from then. As of that day, he had learned how to swim. And it was a _glorious_ sensation.

After another loop-de-loop around Mathias, they propelled themselves to the surface. Their exiting speed was such that they shot out of the lake completely, landing right where Mathias had thrown Scott mere minutes ago with a soft _thump_.

They laid back on the grass, soaked to their bones and appreciating the temporary but glorious sight that was the moon instead of a comet in the sky. Scott personally thought that he would have liked it if time froze at this moment exactly, so he could savor it forever.

"That... was... _AMAZING_." Scott choked out after calming himself the best he could. "Can we do it again?"

"Nah, the Thing is going to expel us if we stay too long." Mathias said, a wide smile stuck on his face.

"And Doctor Nicole is already very upset, you two should come back already." a voice said behind them.

The two swimmers instinctively sprang to their feet and whipped around to see a Clefable with dreary eyes toting two bags, one of them Mathias's. She was grinning at them with a hint of exasperation.  
"Have a nice swim?" she said, beckoning for them to follow.

* * *

 **-Midsola Lake, Area 3-**

"...Uh, I can carry my own bag... if it's heavy..." Mathias said.

"Nah, it's fine." the Clefable replied, shaking her load of two bags a little.

"...Who are you? And how'd you find us?" Scott asked. He had seen this Clefable on their way out of the settlement, but he was sure she had gone in a different direction from them... How was she suddenly here and escorting them out of the dungeon?

"Coretta. Flame Fighter, Senior Seeker. I was _going_ to find a lost Persim Band dropped at the Krooko Town dungeon, but then HQ had to make me, the only Seeker outdoors, find and return a Mudkip and a Squirtle to the settlement hospital." she rolled her eyes. "And I saw you kids heading out with me earlier, I knew where to go. That, and your shouting was very easy to hear, even for my ears. I changed course and followed your footsteps... beat up an Arcanine on the way... and here I am."

"Oh... right." Mathias said, looking guilty. "Is doc okay? I shouldn't have brought Scott along without telling her, sorry..."

"'Fraid she's having a near-seizure, but she'll be alright once we get back." Coretta said airily.

Meanwhile, Scott had many questions that had resurfaced after temporarily being quieted at the lake.  
"So, Coretta... can I ask some questions while we go? I kind of have amnesia, I'd like to know some things..." He had decided not to mention his human bit to anyone else from now on, if he could help it. He doubted Coretta would believe it anyway, and there was no point even if she did.

"Sorry to hear, but fire away." she chirped.

"Well, first off... how'd you get the mission to find us?" Scott fired.

"This thing." Coretta said, holding up and tapping a sparkly thing she unpinned from her bag. It was a teardrop-shaped blue badge with wings. Scott recognized it as a Flame Fighter badge. "This thing lights up and vibrates when HQ wants to talk to us. Psychic Pokémon back at the base use the badges to tell us stuff telepathically. Its range is short, but it has its uses. Like right now, for example."

"Oh." Scott thought that those badges would be a nice thing to have. And he had another question. "...What are Seekers?"

"Eh, you know how Flame Fighters have different roles in the big scheme of things at least, right?"

Scott did not, but nodded anyway.

"Seekers are probably the most unimportant of them all." she rolled her eyes. "Four divisions. Defenders, Explorers, Restockers, and Seekers."

"Uh-huh." Scott responded, sidestepping a slumbering wild Rattata.

"Defenders are, well, defenders. They take position in and out of settlements, and are there to stop fire Pokémon from intruding and eating everyone. They're also in charge of inside problems as well, like sudden outbreaks of fighting or petty theft... they go on patrols around the place..."

"Fighting?" Scott repeated. "Do you guys fight each other?"

"We're a bunch of Pokémon confined to relatively small spaces, there's bound to be some trouble." she stated matter-of-factly. "Just everyday friction. And occasionally, a showdown caused by the only Zangoose in the settlement meeting the one and only Seviper in a corridor. That was a mess."

"...Yeah, that would have been a mess." Scott agreed.

"Next. Explorers do just that, exploring. They explore unknown areas, new mystery dungeons, and record possible locations for water and food. They tell other divisions about their finds so they can utilize the knowledge. Their ultimate goal is finding out the reason the comet stopped in the sky. Not much progress in that regard, but they try hard.

"And... next was... oh yeah, Restockers. They go to places where the Explorers found resources and secure them for their settlement's citizens. That's the point, Explorers don't touch the loot, they just mark them on a map so that Restockers can get them. And, if you didn't know, Flame Fighters are tied to their settlements. For example, I'm part of the Indigo Flame Fighters.

"Seekers..." Coretta had a sudden coughing fit before resuming her talking. "Seekers are-"

"I can explain, if you're tired..." Mathias suggested.

"I'm fine, Mathias." she insisted. "As I was saying, Seekers are like an awkward mix of Explorers and Restockers, and toned down a lot. We locate lost items, lost Pokémon, and escort Pokémon from one Settlement to another when the occasion arises. That's it. We only go to known locations. Nothin' that interesting, and not much fighting if we stay stealthy. No real exploring either, that's up to the Explorers."

"And you said you were... a Senior Seeker? What does that mean?" Scott asked with renewed caution at her grumbling tone.

"Means I've done the job a lot and am good at it." Coretta said shortly. "...And there's an unofficial fifth division, Recruits. Recruits are rookies who just applied, and they can do easy missions from all divisions. When they get good at it, they can choose from the four divisions and main one. And that's about it."

"Okay. Thanks for telling me, Coretta." Scott said, his mind already pondering what would be the best division for him, if he ever had to decide... it would probably never happen, but he always had strange ideas like them.

"No problemo, Squirtle. ...Ah, we're out!"

* * *

 **-Skoebar Desert-**

The sky abruptly blinked into red, the moon disappearing to be replaced by the Trail of Moltres, the comet which frozen in place for thirty years and had been plaguing millions of Pokémons' lives.

To Scott's displeasure, the cool and crisp atmosphere of the lake had also reverted to the heat waves of the desert. The water left over on his body from the swim seemed to have evaporated instantly upon exiting the dungeon.

"You know the drill, right?" Coretta said, taking her badge out.

"Hey, couldn't we have used the teleport feature in the dungeon?" Scott inquired. "That would have been a lot less bother."

"Scott, mystery dungeons are big time-space anomalies." Mathias replied. "Trying to teleport inside one... wouldn't be pretty. We could end up inside the dirt or in the middle of the clouds... maybe even in the _past_..."

"Mathias is right." Coretta confirmed. "So... we going or not? I'd have no regrets, but doc would actually die from shock if I said I left you to rot here..."

So without further ado, Scott awkwardly clung to the Clefable with Mathias. She raised the badge to the cloudless sky, and the sensation of weightlessness once again flooded Scott's body. He glanced one last time at the solitary palm, looking decades old and standing alone in front of a crater of sand, before the storm of colors engulfed his vision.

* * *

 **-Indigo Flame Fighters Base-**

Once the light had faded, they were standing in the middle of a roomy stone space, surrounded by Pokémon of various size and type, none of which paid them much attention. There were a lot of stone desks where Pokémon worked with their backs turned to them, drawing maps and talking to each other seriously. A giant flag with the same winged teardrop from the badge adorned the wall.

"...Hi, Coretta." a Buizel came along and said, looking at her tagalongs. "Are these the kids that went missing?"

"Yup, found them at Midsola Lake. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get them back to the hospital _and_ go back out to get that Persim Band." Coretta sighed.

"Of course, er, go ahead." the Buizel mumbled, making way. Then his eyes locked with Mathias. "...Well, lookie who we have here! Mathias! That Mudkip who made off with an amnesiac was _you_! Sneaking out _again_?"

"Barry, don't tell Marcel I'm here now, I'll be skinned alive-" Mathias pleaded, but it was too late.

"MARCEL! MARCEL, MATHIAS IS BACK!" Barry shouted.

Mathias groaned.

And quite suddenly, a Marshtomp emerged from the crowd of Fighters, looking quite... _murderous_.

" _WHAT,_ " he growled, making Mathias squeak. "DID I _SAY,_ " he stomped forward to his brother, quieting the room and making a nearby Flaaffy faint. "ABOUT LEAVING THE SETTLEMENT?"

"Don't?" Mathias whispered, cowering beneath Marcel's intimidating figure. Scott backed away to Coretta, who silently covered his ears and folded hers.

"I TOLD YOU TO NOT LEAVE, _NEVER,_ BUT _NO!_ YOU _TAKE MY BADGE_ WHEN I'M OFF-DUTY, STROLL ALONG AND _'RESCUE'_ A SQUIRTLE AND _CRAWL_ BACK, AND GO OUTSIDE _AGAIN_ WHEN MY BACK'S TURNED?" Coretta's ear-covering did not do anything for him, as Scott could hear every syllable quite clearly. "THEN YOU _SAID_ YOU WERE GOING TO LOOK AFTER YOUR SUPPOSED 'RESCUEE', BUT _NO,_ YOU _TAKE_ THE _PATIENT OUT WITH YOU!_ OUT TO _ARCEUS_ KNOWS _WHERE_ , A MIRACLE YOU WEREN'T TURNED INTO _MUDKIP BARBECUE!_ "

Mathias made a noise that sounded like _eep_ , but it only enraged Marcel further.

" _ **I TOLD YOU NOT TO LEAVE!**_ _IS THAT NOT ENOUGH FOR YOU?_ I'VE LOST COUNT! HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I TOLD YOU _**NOT TO LEAVE**_ , _I LOST COUNT!_ HOW CAN A _SINGLE_ MUDKIP BE _SO_ **_IGNORANT?_** "

The entire room went silent. Barry looked horrified by the result of his actions.

Marcel breathed deeply, seeming to regret his outburst. "...You... come to my quarters later. I'm not done with you." And he turned and left, leaving a petrified Mudkip and a cold silence in his wake.

"Let's get you to Doc." Coretta whispered to Scott, and went to Mathias. She scooped the motionless Pokémon up and exited, Scott following right behind.

"...Barry, you should learn to shut your muzzle sometimes." a Flygon advised to him once the base had started talking again.


	4. Chapter 4: Change of Plans

**-Indigo Settlement Hospital-**

They were back at Scott's ward at the hospital, after traversing a main hall more bustling than ever. Scott supposed these Pokémon slept at day and woke up at darker-day(which was night), judging by how the hall was more busy further into the night, but he wasn't sure.

"I am so glad you're back safely, dear..." Nicole the Nidoqueen said, furiously hugging Scott. He tried to say something in return, but all the air was choked out of his lungs by the embrace.

"My job's done." Coretta said, setting down Mathias's bag on the floor. "Oh, and Mathias... I'll do something about your brother. Don't worry too much, kay?"

Mathias nodded blankly, still shook by his brother's shouting session.

Once the doctor had checked every inch of Scott to determine that he was in perfect shape, better than average due to the lake swim, she informed him that a Hypno would come soon and see to his amnesia. After that she left the room, suggesting that they didn't leave this time and that Mathias went to his own room and rested too.

"...Mathias? Alright there, buddy?" Scott said, snapping his fingers in front of Mathias's face. Or at least trying to. His fingers were not suited for finger-snapping, it seemed.

"I'm... I'm alright." said Mathias, in a tone that suggested he was not alright at all. "I'll just... go and see Marcel."

Mathias got up and slumped to the door.

"Mathias!" Scott shouted involuntarily. Again... what kept making him do these things? Was he this irrational of a person? "I'll go too, it's my fault you went out in the first place..."

"You don't have to. Stay here." Mathias mumbled, looking away.

"I _want_ to. Let's go." Scott said firmly, kicking open the door, ready to accompany Mathias to his brother's wrath.

He paused.

"...Where _is_ your brother's quarters, anyway...?"

"I'll lead the way." Mathias said with a grin in spite of himself.

* * *

 **-Indigo Settlement Main Hall-**

They informed Doctor Nicole of their trip, to which she responded with a 'good luck' and a plea to come back to her office within an hour for Scott's amnesia treatment.

As for the trip, Mathias was headed to his brother's living quarters, towards certain doom; Marcel was very angry with him for several reasons.  
Scott had said he would go together, but he was at a loss for what to do when he was there. Would Marcel just kick him out and resume his shouting? If he didn't kick him out, what would he say in Mathias's defense? Why did he want to follow in the first place? Did he, an outsider, have any business butting in a personal scolding?

"Mathias, do you guys sleep at day and do stuff at night?" Scott asked finally, while they were waiting in the long queue lined up in front of the Flame Fighter area's entrance tunnel. The sheer number of Pokémon in the hall meant that queues waiting to enter an area were commonplace, especially so in important places like the Flame Fighters' base.

"Well, yeah. Naturally." Mathias confirmed, still looking down at the prospect of confronting his furious brother, although his expression was lightened slightly at Scott's presence. "It's better than daytime to move around and all. This time of the day is when we get ready for the day's routine. Night's routine, I guess. ...No, a little past that, actually. Is it... lunch? I think it's lunch. Look, the hall is busy right now, right?"

"I can see that." Scott muttered, staring once again at the endless stream of Pokémon moving busily inside the great stone dome known as the main hall. "And I've been meaning to ask you... how many Pokémon live in this place?"

"It was around four hundred, last time I checked." said Mathias. "We're a medium-populated settlement, really."

"Are other settlements nearby?" Scott asked. He was getting self-conscious about how he had pelted anyone he met with endless questions. But it was necessary, he knew; knowledge would be his only power in this strange world. Still, he would have to cut back on the questions a little.

"Not _nearby_. Closest one is... yeah, five hours by foot, the Gravel settlement." Mathias sighed. "The settlements have a network, and they exchange status reports regularly. Request help when supplies are low, all that stuff. But that isn't a common thing, so we usually keep to ourselves. Traveling is dangerous, y'know? Like that Arcanine we met, but that one was a relatively easy enemy... if we met a _Charizard_... that kind of danger's exactly why Marcel is going to murder me anyway..."

Scott decided it was time to steer the conversation out of Depression Territory. "Hey, I'm kind of-"

"Move on, will you?" said a voice angrily behind them.

Scott turned to see the queue behind the two of them, longer than ever, looking rather mad. "You're blocking the way!" the Golduck behind him added.

Indeed, they were so immersed in their talking that they had not moved at all while the line in front of them dispersed. Apologizing profusely, Scott ran to the now-free tunnel, Mathias following closely.

They arrived at a big room with several more tunnels branching out in all directions, a wooden sign for every one, indicating their purpose.  
Mathias pointed at a staircase leading down, with the sign 'Fighter Quarters'. Surely Marcel's quarters would be there too.

"Well, let's do this." Scott said, sounding queasy. Feeling queasy, as well.

* * *

 **-Flame Fighter Quarters-**

Downstairs, there was a corridor much like the hospital's, with doors on either side and hatches on the ceiling as well. Here, the doors were much bigger, and had golden, shield-shaped plaques on them. Scott read the names 'Brook / Pablo' from the nearest one, and 'Roselio / Zachary' on the next.

"Marcel's room is deep in, we have to go further..." Mathias said, walking on.

"Hey, why are there two names per room?" Scott inquired, mentally berating himself for asking yet again.

"Flame Fighters have to have a partner with them for activities." Mathias rattled off. It was a good thing that Mathias was such an enthusiastic talker. "It's a requirement. You go on missions with your partner, have meals with them, share quarters... Since Fighters are tasked with such difficult stuff, it's necessary to have a trusted partner. That's what they say, at least. The plaques have two names because they're partners sharing that room."

Strangely enough, Scott had a sudden vision — a Blastoise kicking an Arcanine into the Trail of Moltres and blowing the comet up, a nearby Swampert cheering — play in his mind. It was ridiculous, he knew, and he quickly shook it away.

"We're...here." Mathias whispered. He stopped in front of a door, its plaque reading 'Carter / Marcel'.

In silence, Mathias turned the doorknob and entered. Scott was right behind him.

Beyond the door was a hexagon-shaped cave room, much larger than the one Scott was confined to at the hospital,

It had a large workbench of sorts on the wall left to them, a grated fireplace on the farthest wall, and two huge and inviting beds on the walls next to it.  
The wall to their right was covered with various maps, lists, some rugged bags and wet towels hanging from stone nails. Scott guessed the towels were there for humidity.  
The wall with the door had a winged-teardrop flag pasted over the passageway, just like the Fighters' base of operations. It seemed to be a symbol for the Fighters, depicted in flags and badges and such.  
A blue carpet covered the hexagonal floor, completing the look of absolute security and comfort that the room provided.

" _Ahem._ "

The cough brought Scott back to his senses, and he finally acknowledged the frowning Marshtomp standing on that very carpet. "I didn't ask you to come, too." Marcel growled, his arms crossed.

Scott didn't know what to say(mostly because Marcel was right), so he simply stood there, as defiantly as possible.

"...Whatever, spectate if you want. _Mathias._ " his tone was absolutely dangerous, and Scott stepped back so Mathias could confront his brother. ...And because he was scared. "What did I say earlier, when you stole my badge again?"

Mathias said something, so tiny, so indiscernible, that Marcel seemed to just ignore it.

" _I told you that I'd forgive you._ " Marcel whispered. Yet, the words rang in the room as if he shouted it. "'Just don't do it again. You were lucky to come back unscathed.'"

"Marcel, I — " Mathias squeaked.

"A while ago, I had a chance to read up on the tally of missing civilian Pokémon from the Indigo settlement." Marcel continued. " _More than fifty_ , when this settlement hasn't been here for more than thirty years. So, approximately one or two Pokémon go missing every year. Most of them got overzealous and thought they could pull their own weight outdoors. Huh, doesn't _that_ sound familiar?"

"Marcel, I'm — "

"Sorry. You should be. Did you really want to become the second missing Pokémon of this year? Because that Azurill kid still hasn't come back since last month."

"I asked him about mystery dungeons, is it wrong that he wanted to show me around?" Scott burst out, instantly biting his tongue afterwards.

"And _I_ didn't give him permission to show a mindless Squirtle around the globe." Marcel said coldly. "Now, please get out, you've no business defending him."

"I don't think so." a deep voice rumbled behind Scott. He turned to see that he was face-to-face with a crouching, very large, very intimidating Carracosta. Scott took a step back.

"Oh, do you?" Marcel snapped. "Thank you for your opinion. Now do me a favor and escort that Squirtle out of here."

The turtle replied by picking up the smaller one, Scott, and balancing him on his shoulder. He then stomped over to one of the beds and sat there with a _crash_.

"That's _my_ — _urghhh_. I'm in the middle of a _thing_ , Carter!" Marcel complained.

"Carry on." the one named Carter grinned.

Marcel scowled and turned his attention to Mathias again. "What should I do to _tame_ you? _What should I do with you_?"

"You _could_ just make him a Fighter and be done with it." Carter interrupted, startling Scott and almost making him fall off. "Ah, sorry." he added, adjusting Scott's position. Scott rather felt like the pirate's parrot, but was too intimidated and confused to voice anything.

"Out of the question." Marcel said instantly. "And get out, seriously."

"Coretta told me how you guys incapacitated an Arcanine." Carter said, ignoring Marcel. "Either it was a really weak one or you kids could hold your ground."

Scott would have liked to respond that it was likely the former, but the situation and the strangeness of it all made him simply nod.

"And you've found a Midsola Lake at its fullest?" he pressed.

Another nod, this time pretty truthful.

"Well! Looks like we've got ourselves a new Fighter team!" Carter declared, clapping his large flippers together and this time really shaking Scott off. "Sorry."

Marcel was turning a delicate magenta, making him look rather like a shiny Pokémon. "Carter... why are you so intent on interrupting me today...?"

"Cut Mathias some slack, you can't tell? You can't tell, when he lugs a perfectly stocked Fighter bag around everywhere? You can't tell, when he keeps sneaking your badge and running around with it? _Seriously_!" Carter exclaimed in mock-astonishment.

"I can't tell WHAT?" the Marshtomp said with hot annoyance ringing in every syllable. Mathias backed up.

"He wants to be a Flame Fighter like his brother, duh." he said, rolling his eyes. "Stop acting like you didn't notice. He's wanted it ever since _you_ got in the league."

" _Mathias is unprepared_." Marcel hissed.

"We'll know if he is or isn't by making him a Recruit, won't we? But no worries there! He already rescued a Squirtle!" Carter chuckled.

"Well, fine then! Make him a Fighter, I don't care at this point!" Marcel shouted. At this, Mathias' eyes sparkled with what looked like hope. "But what about his partner? What, will _you_ be his partner?"

"Nah, I'm all yours, remember? _But,_ here's Mathias's." he scooped Scott up and presented him to Marcel.

"Me?" Scott said blankly.

"HIM?" Marcel snorted. "The amnesia turtle who still hasn't been to the psychic? Come off it. He'll get his memory back and he'll turn out to be a kid who's wandered all the way here from Gravel settlement. I'll escort him back myself, heck! What a shame, Mathias has no partner to be a Fighter." Mathias's sparkles went out.

"Well, wouldn't that be proof that he's capable? I don't recognize him myself, and I know most of this place's residents. But the nearest other settlement is a five-hour trip, _six_ with this guy's size! That's a big distance to cover, and if that isn't proof of his skill... Perhaps he came here for Mathias and forgot about it?"

Scott would have liked to claim that he had no idea how he got there, and that he probably fell out of the sky, but that would lead to awkward questions.

"Well, maybe you're wrong! Maybe it's a just a kid from daycare you haven't met yet! What then, huh?" Marcel was sounding desperate, for some reason.

"We'll see, Marcel. We'll see... now, I guess." he got up and scooped up Mathias too, and made for the exit with the two Pokémon in his arms.

"Where are you going? I'm not finished!" Marcel barked.

Carter only hummed a tune, and slammed the door in Marcel's face with his leg. "I just take you guys to Doctor Nicole, right?"

"Yeah." Scott said faintly, wondering why this day kept getting more complicated.

* * *

 **-Indigo Settlement Hospital-**

Carter had carried them all the way back to the hospital, where Scott would get his amnesia cured, and finally learn the truth about everything.

But Scott wasn't sure he _wanted_ to get his mind checked. He was rather thinking that nothing good could come from it.

While Scott had many worries, chief of them was that Mathias would be left alone, completely, should Scott remember everything and find a way back to his normal life. Judging by how Marcel spoke, Mathias had no alternative for a Fighter partner other than Scott. If he left, Mathias would not be able to pursue his Flame Fighter dreams. And Scott did not want that. He wanted Mathias to be happy.

They had just met a few hours ago, granted, but Scott felt very close to Mathias already. He also felt that he could safely assume Mathias thought similar things of him as well.

"Thank you for... for saving us, Carter." Mathias said, snapping Scott out of his stupor.

"Aye, it was nothing." the Carracosta replied, grinning. "Coretta tipped me off, told me about your exploits, and I was ready to help."

"...I've been thinking about that, Mr. Carter." said Scott while the trio waited in queue for Doctor Nicole's office.

"Just Carter, my friend. And... thinking about what?" Just Carter said, nodding to a nearby Furret who had its arm in a sling and had gotten all excited at the sight of him.

"Me... Mathias's partner? Doesn't that mean _I'll_ become a Fighter, too?" Scott asked, knowing the answer but needing confirmation to even grasp the concept.

"Yep, naturally. I thought you'd like it, and you get along with Mathias well enough, from what I've heard. Gone swimming together already." Carter said. He glanced at Scott's troubled expression. "...What, don't tell me you _dislike_ the idea of being a Flame Fighter, I just made Marcel mad and all! We can't back up."

"No! I... I think I'd like it, being a Fighter and all!" Scott stuttered. He thought he could hear a sigh of relief from Mathias. "I'm... doubtful about myself, I guess."

"And in what way?" Carter hummed amusedly.

"That I don't have the necessary abilities? That I'm unqualified? That I'll end up being a burden to everyone?" _And that maybe I'll have to leave this world before getting to do anything with Mathias?_ he added mentally.

" _Everyone's_ unqualified when they sign up, Squirtle. We don't recruit _elites_ from the get-go. We recruit people who want to help the Fighters, help the Pokémon of this day live on and help us eventually find peace. You get qualified by _training_ as a Recruit." Carter said in a reassuring tone. "Well, some amount of skill is required, but you guys found a full Midsola lake after getting away from an Arcanine. That's a feat even I haven't done at your position."

Scott was about to explain that _he_ had taken no part in the defeating of the Arcanine, and that the lake was a coincidence and had nothing to do with their actual skill, but it had become their turn in the queue for the doctor's office.

"Welcome, how may I — " Doctor Nicole said, stopping abruptly when she saw who had arrived. She got up from her chair and squealed. " _Carter_! It is so nice to see you! What might be the occasion?"

"Here to drag this Squirtle chap away after he gets his mental exam." he said. Scott was now under the impression that Carter was a legend of sorts, judging by how nearby Pokémon got excited to no end by his mere presence.

The Nidoqueen's smile faded. "Take? Take him?" she pointed with a claw at Scott, who was awkwardly positioned in Carter's left arm.

"Yes, naturally." he replied, setting Scott down. "I plan to take him for Flame Fighter registration, if things go all right here."

"Well, if that is the case..." she said, looking suddenly sad. She turned to Scott. "I never agreed with the Fighter business, personally. I know that they're crucial to the settlement's operation, but... it gets people hurt."

Before Scott could think of a reply to this, the doc took out a thermometer-thing from her gown's pocket, the kind that Mathias had once used on Scott, and stuck it in his mouth. The thing made a _beep_ noise after a second, and she pulled it out to look at the results.

"Perfect condition, perfect. Harrier! You can come in!" she shouted.

A moment later, a Hypno entered the doctor's office through a curtain Scott had mistaken for the wall. "I'm coming, lady. Alright... where's the kid?"

Scott raised his hand meekly, his heart hammering. Was this the end hurtling towards him? Was he about to find out the truth?

"Alrighty. We'll get started immediately." Harrier said, clapping his hands together. When they parted, there was a pendulum swinging from his left. It moved back and forth, back and forth... _back and..._

Scott was suddenly in total darkness, unable to move a muscle.

 _...Hello?_ Scott thought, addressing the void in front of him.

 _Ah, hello._ the Hypno's voice said from nowhere, startling him. _Don't panic... I put you to sleep so I can work. I am currently in your dreams._

 _In my DREAMS? How does that — ?_

 _Let's focus. Now... your name?_

 _Uh... Scott._

 _Ahem. By name, I mean your **real** name. Do you remember it._

 _I... don't._

 _Relax, relax... Do you remember where you came from._

 _...No...?_

 _Hrm. Then let me ask this: Who are you?_

 _Me? I'm..._

 _And I mean this fundamentally. At your core, who are you? What is your identity?_

 _I'm a human._ Scott thought to himself.

 _...You are a human._

Scott realized that there were no such things as private thoughts just now. _...Uh..._

 _Are you sure?_ the Hypno's telepathic thoughts had a hint of panic to them now.

 _Yes. I'm sure._ he thought firmly, resigned to the fact that he had let the secret slip.

 _Do you have any memories related to it. Any proof. Anything that led you to believe that._

 _...No._ he realized that _—_ _I don't have any proof._

 _Any? Then how do you know?_

 _I just KNOW. And... I do have... some vague stuff... I think..._

 _Show me._

 _Huh? Sorry?_

 _Show me your vague recollections. They are crucial to this. Concentrate on those memories._

 _Okay...? I'll try..._

And the darkness around him shifted. He was suddenly sinking, sinking into the depths of a watery abyss, cold pressure choking his body...

 _NO! NOT THAT ONE! NOOOO!_

 _CALM DOWN!_ the Hypno ordered, and the vision stopped. He was back in the void. _Another one, then. Surely you have a happier thought related to your... humanity._

...The void shifted again... and this time, he was falling. Acceleration... the clouds were getting smaller... The wind slapped his numb face, and he closed his eyes tightly in denial...

 _ **NOOOOOO!**_

He screamed and screamed, screamed his lungs out, until he was out of breath and panting painfully.

"What happened?" he heard a shocked female voice say.

"I can't do anything." a male's said. "He's suffering from false memories, thoughts designed to shake him. This isn't simple amnesia. It's a _curse_. I'd say they were planted there by a skilled psychic Pokémon who had some ill feelings about this kid..."

"You can't help?" The female was the doctor. He recognized her voice now.

"Not unless we can meet the culprit or find a psychic stronger than it... and that could be hard, seeing what they _did_ to this fella here." and that was the Hypno.

"Are you okay?" and that was Mathias.

He opened his eyes, and realized he was shaking and crying on the floor. Mathias was looking over him fearfully.

He sat up and tried his best to wipe the tears away, although that proved to be hard with his moist turtle skin. Mathias handed him a piece of cloth which he gladly took and dabbed his eyes with.

"Then... you can't cure his amnesia." the doctor said fearfully.

"No. I could _try,_ but that could drive him to insanity... and nobody can cure _that._ " the Hypno replied, and looked into Scott's eyes with a strange look on his face. Was it pity? Was it... _fear_?

"Welp. If _he_ can't answer questions about his origin, we can't do anything." Carter remarked. "We'll contact other settlements. Ask if they have a Squirtle who went missing."

"Then what happens to him?" Mathias asked, taking the piece of cloth back from Scott, who had finished crying. It seemed to be a blue scarf of sorts, which Mathias stuffed into a pocket on the bag which Scott had not noticed before.

"In my personal opinion, we should just make him a citizen of this settlement." Carter said carefully. "Even if we found out where he came from, escort missions are dangerous, and... he has amnesia. I don't think he would have been in an important position, considering his age, and since he has no memories about previous ties, staying here would be the best thing for everyone. If he agrees to it, of course."

Scott nodded with a sniff, still shook by the horrid visions he had managed to pull out from the depths of his mind. The Hypno gave Scott that weird look again before exiting the office.

"In that case, looks like we'll have to register you as a citizen before a Fighter." Carter said, thumping Scott on the shell. "Let's go."

And the threesome left, leaving the doctor alone to her troubled thoughts.


	5. Chapter 5: Settling In

**-Indigo Settlement Information Center-**

"How may I help you." a bored-looking female Meowstic said in a monotone, sitting at a counter like many others next to it.

"We're here for citizen registration." Carter said, sounding equally bored.

"For whom?" she asked, some documents flying up and organizing themselves behind her back, enveloped by purple light. Psychic Pokémon were weird.

"This Squirtle. Nickname is..." Carter set down Scott in front of the counter and hesitated.

"...He's Scott." Mathias said for him. Scott briefly wondered where Mathias had got the idea for his nickname. He would have to ask later.

The Meowstic peered at him, and her unblinking stare made him even more nervous. "Seems a bit late to be registering... and when did you graduate daycare?"

"Uh..." the truthful answer was _never,_ but that would land him in an awkward spot. He looked to Carter for help.

"Special circumstances." Carter quickly added, flashing his own Fighter badge.

"If you say so." the Meowstic said dryly, looking unimpressed but still filling the rest of the paper in without any further questions. She then thrust the paper at Scott, followed by a wide tub of black liquid.

"...What's this?" he asked, bewildered.

"Footprint." she snapped impatiently, giving the liquid a little shake. Was it ink?

Carter abruptly lifted Scott up, dipped one of his feet in the liquid, and pressed it to a blank space in the paper like a stamp. Once the operation was done, the remaining ink on his foot quickly dried off, leaving it clean. Scott wondered what this convenient liquid was, examining the tub before it got whisked away by the purple glow.

"That's that, then. You will be living in room..." the Meowstic was about to say, having checked the footprint-ed paper and stashed it away.

"Don't bother, he's going to be moving in to room two-five-eight to live with its previous resident." Carter interrupted.

"If you say so." she growled, taking out Scott's paper again and correcting something. "You're done. NEXT!"

And before Scott could make any inquiries, Carter scooped him up again and walked away.

* * *

 **-Main Hall-**

They were now walking back to the Fighter base, where Scott and Mathias would register as Recruits. Scott was lost in thought, contemplating when and why he had agreed to all this.

"...So I'm going to live at room two-five-eight? Whose room is that?" Scott finally asked.

"Mine." Mathias said. "We talked about it while you were getting checked by the Hypno. It's a requirement for partners to share a normal residence room as Recruits, too. When we finally choose a division, we move into our Fighter quarters together."

"...And what if I turned out to be a crazy kid from daycare?" Scott said, rather touched by how Mathias was so willing to share a room with him.

"We were banking on you ending up in this situation, really." Carter smiled. "Ah, we're here."

Once in the branching-paths room, Carter took them to the left tunnel, the tunnel that had a sign reading 'NEW APPLICATIONS'.

* * *

 **-Flame Fighter Registration Office-**

The tunnel led to an empty room like any other in the settlement, with a lone desk where a Buizel was snoozing peacefully.

"Barry." Carter growled. Setting Scott and Mathias down, he stomped over to the sleeping Pokémon and clapped his flippers in Barry's face.

The resultant shockwave shook the whole room, and it was certainly enough to wake Barry.

"WHAAAH!" he shouted and scrambled on the spot. When he saw who had woken him up, his movement ceased, and his jaw dropped in horror instead. "SORRY! _SORRY_! I DOZED OFF!"

"Registration duty, I see." Carter snorted. "Granted, nobody wants to do this... but that isn't an excuse for slacking off."

"Does nobody sign up to be a Flame Fighter? This place is awfully quiet." Scott whispered to Mathias while Carter scolded Barry.

"Not _every day_ , since it's dangerous." Mathias mumbled back. "Not that popular. But there's still a steady stream of people who want to be Fighters, so it isn't a problem."

"Like you?" Scott grinned.

"Like me." Mathias admitted.

"...and who's going to be registering?" Barry sighed, gathering his papers.

"These two, obviously." Carter growled, gesturing to the whispering duo.

"Ah! Look who it is, the Mudkip of the day! Mathias! Marcel finally let you join?" he said, jotting some stuff down on the documents.

"Not really." Mathias said in a low tone.

"I guess Carter was behind it." Barry remarked. "Look, sorry for what happened earlier."

"It's okay." Mathias said hastily.

"Let's get on with the registration, shall we? I still have to go and calm Marcel down after this." Carter said.

"Right! I'm done, anyway! Congrats, you two are now officially Recruits, and partners in the whole thing. Come back here tomorrow so we can arrange for training." Barry declared.

Scott blinked. "That's it?"

"Yuppers. You can go now." Barry confirmed, stretching a little and making weird _pop_ noises from his spine.

"And my work here is finished!" Carter added. "Alright you two, be good. I'll go and calm Marcel down, he's probably got to destroying my bed by now."

Chuckling, Carter walked out.

"...Let's go." Mathias whispered, dragging Scott out of the room and leaving the Buizel to snooze more in peace.

* * *

 **-Main Hall-**

"So, Scott, would you like me to show you around the settlement, or should we just go straight to our room?" Mathias asked, looking happy again. The prospect of being a Flame Fighter seemed to have lifted his spirits, if only for the moment.

Scott considered for a moment. "Nah. I am _really_ tired, let's just go and..."

Just then, his stomach churned and growled.

"You haven't eaten anything yet?" Mathias frowned.

"...I guess? Yeah, nothing but water ever since you found me." Scott had neglected his hunger completely in the chaos of the day, but now that things were pretty much wrapped up, it had come to haunt him in full force. His insides were positively aching in protest.

"Then change of plans. We're going to the cafeteria. We can get your water bottle there as well. Hope lunch isn't over yet..." Mathias said, changing course.

"That would be nice, yeah." Scott mumbled, rubbing his belly with a pained scowl.

* * *

 **-Indigo Cafeteria-**

Accessible by the biggest tunnel in the main hall, the cafeteria was a pleasant place, a rectangular hall with endless rows of tables and seats crowding the floor, light provided by soft-yellow glowing crystals on the ceiling.

Near the entrance was a space blocked off by a counter, where several Blissey were standing and serving meals. Behind the line of Blissey was a kitchen, where Scott could spot several Chansey chopping up ingredients and tipping them into giant pots.

To top it all, an unidentifiable mixed scent of rich sweetness was wafting all over the scene, making Scott's stomach twist with renewed hunger.

The seats were mostly vacant, with only a few Pokémon here and there to eat their belated lunches. Seeing this, Mathias hurried to a Blissey who had neat piles of dishes stacked around her. Scott followed closely.

"Ah, late eaters?" she smiled at them. She was certainly more friendly than that Meowstic.

"Yep. Give us... um... Scott, what _do_ you like?" Mathias asked after a moment of consideration.

" _Anything."_ Scott groaned, ready to faint.

"Okay. We'll have a dish of anything, and a dish of anything. And a water bottle for a new citizen." Mathias said cheerfully.

Nodding, she turned on the spot like a ballerina, and at the end of the full spin, she was laden with a platter of two bowls filled with colorful stew, a wooden spoon, and a full water bottle that looked identical to Mathias's, except that it had the name 'Scott' etched on it.

 _...How did she do all of that so quickly?_ Scott thought to himself, taking the platter. He was the one out of the two that had usable hands and no bag to drag around.

"Two berry-seed stews, and a pre-ordered bottle for a new Squirtle citizen." she sang. "Water refills are once a day, and you should measure your sips carefully!"

Scott was hungry enough to eat a Tyrantrum by then, and he paid little attention to her warning. Rushing to the nearest table with Mathias and setting everything down, Scott swiftly attacked his stew with the spoon.

The stew was a sweet mixture of berries and small chunks of nutty seeds in thick, creamy liquid, piping-hot and searing his throat as it went down. He had never had something quite like this, and he was now of the opinion that he had been missing out until then.

He and Mathias finished at around the same time, Mathias having devoured his directly by mouth. They both took lengthy sips from their bottles to wash the meal down. After that, Mathias balanced the empty dishes on his head and returned it to a Blissey who was apparently in charge of them.

"That was pretty good." Scott said when Mathias returned. "I'm surprised Pokémon use spoons as well."

"What do you take us for, ferals?" Mathias laughed, jumping back up to his seat.

"Well, it's hard to get used to, okay? Back in our world, Pokémon don't build underground caves and serve dinner in bowls." Scott said. "Human, remember?"

"Of course, I couldn't forget _that_." said Mathias airily. "But Scott, I think you should stop mentioning that from now on. I believe you anyway, but if others find out... you could get into trouble."

Scott bit his tongue before saying, "I know. I'm trying to not mention it. Not until I meet someone who might have the ability to send me back and — "

He stopped, sensing that the conversation had become awkward. "...So... where do we pay for the meal?" he said quietly.

"It's on the house." Mathias said with a rapid return to his usual demeanor. "We're all here to survive, so the settlement won't take money for essential needs like food and water."

"That's good." Scott mumbled.

The two sat there, averting each other's eyes, before packing up in silence.

In the end, they were one of the last to exit the cafeteria, which was now preparing for the settlement's dinner.

* * *

 **-Main Hall-**

"...I can carry it for you, Scott." Mathias said, gesturing towards Scott and his personal bottle, which he had been clutching in his hands since the meal.

"Nah, I'll carry my own load." It wasn't the actual reason.

To be truthful, Scott was hugging the water in such a way simply because it was great comfort in some way, to have such precious liquid available to him anytime. He realized why Mathias had reacted in such a way when Scott almost drank from Mathias's supply. It was a limited resource, and he knew to cherish it even without a Blissey warning him in a singsong voice.

"If you say so." Mathias had a look of knowing all too well about Scott's current feelings, but he did not pursue the subject. "Well... to room two-five-eight we go."

* * *

 **-Indigo Settlement Citizen Residence-**

Climbing some stairs in the main hall and entering a small tunnel area, Scott was faced with the overwhelming sight of Pokémon swarming around a slightly smaller carbon copy of the hall, its tunnels replaced with neat lines of endless wooden doors. The sound of doors slamming and citizens talking rang in the dome, the din echoing around Scott's shell and making him sway slightly.

The higher doors were accessed by rocky slopes that looped around the walls. It was one of these slopes that the twosome had to climb, accompanied by several Pokémon of their size. Scott supposed that the lower rooms were meant for the bigger Pokémon, logically. And following that logic, Scott and Mathias had to climb quite a bit.

While they walked, Scott looked over the scene and appreciated once again how there were so many different Pokémon, surviving in the apocalyptic situation as one. It made Scott's heart brim with emotion, although he could not explain exactly why he felt that way. He simply felt happy.

Mathias suddenly skidded to a stop, and Scott walked straight into him, his attention being with the rest of the area.

"Ouch... Hey, we're here." Mathias said in front of a door with a silver plaque. "Room two-five-eight. Our room."

* * *

 **-Room 258-**

Beyond the door was a cozy circular room, with its own lighting crystal embedded on the stalactite-ridden ceiling, flooding the room with its rays. Scott could not stop himself from wondering how those worked, and he stared at it for a moment, pondering, before turning his eyes to the rest of the place.

The walls had various papers pasted on them, some posters depicting famous-looking Pokémon, some outdated advertisements for Flame Fighter applications, and a very large, very old map of a large continent with several islands around it. The continent had a plethora of different terrain, ranging from magma-erupting volcanoes to freezing mountains, and everything in between, all drawn with what Scott could only assume was an artist's creative exaggeration. Was it his current location?

Another interesting feature of the room was the mountain of items on the floor, such as crystal balls, scarves, berries... which were all hastily swept away into a corner by an embarrassed Mathias.

"Sorry, I've been lazy." he muttered. "This place is really filthy. But it's home, I guess."

"I like it." Scott said sincerely, before picking up a nearby bracelet that Mathias had missed. "But what are these?"

"Dungeon exploring gear." Mathias said, taking the bracelet. "I got them myself in dungeons, from the store... Marcel gave me some as birthday gifts, too. I didn't bother to organize them, so..."

"Can I help you get these sorted out?" Scott suggested, ignoring his current fatigue.

Mathias waved him off. "Nah, you can sleep today away, tomorrow's going to be pretty hard on us. Fighter training and all."

"Oh. Right." Scott had forgotten about the training scheduled for the next day. Their first day as a Flame Fighter team. He found that he was dreading it more than he had thought. But there was an even bigger worry on his mind at that moment. And he decided that it could be addressed right this moment. "...Mathias?"

"Yeah?" he answered, dumping some glowing crystal balls into a crate.

"Do you _really_ believe I'm a human?"

Scott had the impression that Mathias was smirking, but he had turned his back on Scott at the perfect angle for him to not be sure of it. "We've been through this. I believe you. What's the problem?"

"I don't understand, that's the problem." Scott said, fiddling with a headband from the ground. "Personally, I would have called you crazy and have been done with it if it were me. And I think that's what most humans and Pokémon alike would do in that situation, too."

"Well, there are a lot of reasons. Three, in fact." Mathias turned to him, the suspected smirk indeed on his face. "Reason one: I _want_ to believe you."

Scott stopped his absentminded twiddling of the headband. "Okay, that wasn't a good reason, next one?"

"I'll explain." laughed Mathias. "It's simply how I work. I want to believe everyone. And that isn't a valid strategy for everyone, I know what you're thinking. But I can just stop trusting if I get betrayed, see?"

"...No, not really." The headband remained stationary in Scott's hands as he was lost in thought, trying to understand this strange way of trust.

"I'm not naive, Scott. I know that not everyone is trustworthy. But that's a really small percentage compared to the people who _are_. At least, I like to believe that. You said you were human, and that was quite possibly the tallest lie I ever heard. But you sounded like you were saying the truth. And if it was? That's reason two."

"And that is...?" Scott asked, still trying to wrap his head around the concept of reason one.

"Humans are extinct!" Mathias exclaimed. "And I'm meeting a self-proclaimed human! Well, you have amnesia, so you can't tell me much about what it was like, but it's still _awesome_. Think about it, I could be talking to... the _king_ of a long-forgotten continent! The _master thief_ of somewhere-town! Or..."

"Whoa, I am pretty sure I wasn't _that_ important of a human." Scott said, holding his stubby hands out. "But master thieves aside, humans extinct? Since when?"

"Since old-enough-to-be-legendary." Mathias chirped. "Nobody has actually seen a human in living memory. It's just all stories that were passed down... They had incredible technology and stuff, apparently."

"Which definitely means that I'm from a different world." Scott said, more to himself than anything. "But... how?"

The two Pokémon, one a human in heart, sat in silence for a while, contemplating.

"...I've cut off reason three, haven't I. Tell me, will you?" Scott said.

"Oh. Yeah. Reason three: ...Um..."

"Sorry?"

"I forgot." Mathias said with a smile creeping up his face. "...Dang it Scott, your amnesia is contagious."

"You 'forgot' the third reason." Scott repeated. "I need closure, Mathias!"

"I'll tell you when I remember it!" Mathias laughed, dodging a pebble thrown at him in mock-frustration. "But the point is that I believe you, so all's well that ends well, eh?"

"You're toying with me!" Scott said indignantly, hurling another rock at the Mudkip.

"Maybe. I'll tell you when you stop chucking rocks at me?" Mathias said, dodging the second gracefully.

"You — !"

The door was kicked open.

There was Marcel, standing in the doorway with a most displeased expression. He gazed upon Scott and Mathias, the former poised to throw a large, bundled-up cape at the latter. Scott threw the cape away with quickness and forced a grin on his face, although it might have ended up as a pained grimace.

"You. Squirtle. You're coming with me." Marcel said, choosing to ignore the imminent projectile fight that had started unfolding.

"...What do you want with him?" Mathias squeaked nervously.

"A walk. I'm not killing him, you know." he added, taking Scott by the hand. " _Yet_." he said to Scott in a whisper that only he could hear.

Scott gulped, and was swiftly lead out of room two-five-eight.

Trouble always found him, he felt.

* * *

- **Citizen Residence-**

"So. You two registered as partners, moments ago." Marcel said, walking down the ever-long slope with Scott by his side. Scott, who had been expecting a yelling session, took this notion of polite conversation as a gift from the gods.

"...Yeah. That happened."

"Right under my nose." snorted Marcel. "Slick."

Scott could not think of a suitable reply, so he kept his mouth shut. Marcel, he noticed, was wearing a orange scarf around his neck now. The scarf had his Flame Fighter badge pinned on to it, which was quite possibly why passerby skidded to hasty halts and let them pass. Or perhaps they were simply intimidated by Marcel. He had a certain chill emanating from him, though his tone was still casual.

"You need to see it from my perspective." Marcel spoke again after quite a while, when they were at the bottom of the long slope. "My brother keeps venturing out into the desert, because nobody _, nobody_ ever watches over people going _out_ , only _in_ , and today he drags a stray Squirtle with amnesia back to the settlement, walks out again with the Squirtle in tow, comes back after nearly getting his head chewed off, and suddenly, yours-truly Carter butts in and stops me from putting an _end_ to this _madness_ , and HE PROCEEDS TO MAKE MY BROTHER DO THE MOST DANGEROUS THING HE COULD _POSSIBLY_ DO IN THIS **GODFORSAKEN CAVE**!"

Scott took a step back at this crescendo of a sentence, and passing Pokémon stared.

"But it's okay." Marcel continued, reverting to his casual attitude instantly. Scott wondered if stress had unhinged him mentally, and then berated himself for thinking such a thing. "Because I have a Plan B."

"Um... great?" Scott said quietly, dreading the Plan.

"Yes, that's an excellent word to describe my Plan, Squirtle. Great. Have a nickname? Or did you forget that as well?" Marcel said, tilting his head at him. It was quite scary.

"Scott. Mathias... suggested it..." he ended in a whisper, witnessing Marcel's eyes flashing with a manic glint.

"Well, _Scott_. You are the integral part in my Plan. You are going to go ahead and try out Recruit training... and you will proceed to perform the worst you can."

" _What_?"

"The perfect plan." Marcel said cheerfully. "It won't be hard, really. Just be terrible at training, and your 'team' will get disbanded, naturally. And then Mathias is safe, I'm happy, and you won't have to have a Marshtomp breathing down your neck all the time."

"But — "

"Trust me, Flame Fighter is not a laughing deal. Apparently our _elite prodigy_ _Carter_ thinks differently, but to tell you the truth, you and Mathias won't stand a _chance_. So... good luck with sucking a whole lot on training." Marcel patted Scott on the head.

"But..."

" _Great_." And Marcel walked away, looking pleased with himself.

It took Scott several minutes after Marcel left to register that he was at the bottom floor of the Residence, in the middle of Pokémon making their way home. He soon regained feeling in his feet and started walking back up the slope, for Marcel had led him all the way down, both in literal location and mood level.

* * *

 **-Room 258-**

Scott was soon stationed in a bed made of straw, in a significantly cleaner room with organized objects stacked neatly to the wall, all cleaned in Scott's absence. Mathias had given him Marcel's old bed from when they were living together. It had been unused ever since Marcel moved to the Fighter quarters, and it would be Scott's temporary bed until they did the same. Or didn't.

Speaking of Marcel...

"What'd he say to you?" Mathias asked carefully, sitting upright in his bed next to Scott's.

"That he hopes I'll keep you safe and be a good partner." Scott lied. The lie was fabricated while he climbed the slope again minutes ago, just in case.

"...Huh. Not what I was expecting, but I'm not complaining." Mathias said, raising his eyebrows in weak disbelief. "Glad you got off alright."

"Right. Yeah." Scott said feebly.

"Well, good night, Scott. Or good day. I dunno what you're familiar with." Mathias sighed.

"I'm okay with either." Scott mumbled.

"Good day."

"Good day, Mathias."

The lighting crystal dimmed by itself. Scott had a passing thought questioning the mechanics of that feature, but was soon lost in dreams of Mathias juggling crystal balls, Marcel tripping him over and making him fall through an endless sky...

He woke from that particular dream later, and after comforting himself with a glance at Mathias's empty bed and a sip of water, he fell back into those uneasy dreams, and he would later forget that the moment ever happened.


End file.
